Considering the importance of knowledge of the spatial distribution of soil properties, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the spatial variability of physical properties in a Cambisolunder different land uses in the southern Amazon region. The study was conducted on three farms with cassava, sugarcane, and agroforestry, in the region of Humaitá, in the south of the State of Amazonas. In these areas, 70 x 70 m grids were established, with a regular spacing of 10 x 10 […]

Soil chronofunctions are an alternative for the quantification of soil-forming processes and underlie the modeling of soil genesis. To establish soil chronofunctions of a Heilu soil profile on Loess in Luochuan, selected soil properties and the 14C ages in the Holocene were studied. Linear, logarithmic, and third-order polynomial functions were selected to fit the relationships between soil properties and ages. The results indicated that third-order polynomial function fit best for the relationships between clay (< 0.002 mm), silt (0.002-0.02 mm), […]

The commom practice of burning the sugar cane plant straw before harvesting has been the subject of very intensive discussions related to the possible changes on soil properties as well as the emission of gases in the atmosphere. The objective of this study was to evaluate variations in soil physical and chemical properties of two areas of Cambisols (Inceptisols) cultivated with sugarcane, on of which area was submitted to continuous cultivation and the other was in its 50th

Plant water and nutrient uptake depends on several factors, mainly on the soil depth explored by the roots. Some soil factors and processes can limit root growth. The objectives of this study were: (a) to quantify the relationships among corn root density with several soil properties and to identify which of these attributes restrict root growth in the Bt horizon and corn yield; (b) to measure the temporal variation of the soil water content to verify if plants extract water […]

The determination of the spatial distribution of soil properties is important to understand soil constraints to plant nutrition and appropriate management of soil resources in recently cultivated areas, particularly where only data from exploratory soil surveys are available . This study addresses spatial variability of clay content (At) and exchangeable potassium (Kt) in soil samples collected in July of 1994, located in Southern Mato Grosso, Brazil. Geostatistical methods were used to describe the spatial variability and predict these soil properties […]

Erodibility is a soil attribute used for conservation planning especially in intensively cultivated land. Soils with high erodibility need more intensive conservation practices than soils with low erodibility. As direct soil erodibility measurement is difficult on the field, the objective of this research was to determine the relationship between soil interrill erodibility and aggregate stability in soils with different physical, chemical and mineralogical properties in Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil. Aggregate stability and soil interrill erodibility were measured in […]

Different soil boron fractions were evaluated from 29 superficial (0-20 cm) soil samples in Ceará, Brazil. Relationships were established between soil fractions and soil properties and soluble boron, which has been used as an index of boron availability to the plants. Fractional boron analyses of the soils were carried out following a sequential procedure. The following determinations were carried out: the water soluble boron (B-Sol), the not specifically adsorbed boron (B-NEsAd), the boron associated to manganese oxide (B-OxMn), the boron […]